THE FINANCIER
Cowperwood. He was very badly frightened and wanted
time to think.
Now at the mention of three hundred and fifty thousand
dollars he stirred nervously, and at the mention of Butler
he moved. Strobik had told him that Cowperwood had
practically confessed to Butler and the others that he was
bankrupt.
" I can't do it, Frank," Stener pleaded, piteously. " I'm
in pretty bad in this matter, it looks to me just now. Mr.
Mollenhauer's secretary met the train out at Wilmington
just now to warn me against this situation, and Strobik
is against it. They know how much money I've got
outstanding. You or somebody has told them. I can't
go against Mollenhauer. I owe everything I've got to
him, in a way. He got me this place."
Cowperwood's eyes clouded ominously. He pretended
to be properly astonished at this development, as he might
well have been; and yet he was not astonished, either.
Stener was such a tool. He was more surprised at what
Stener told him of Mollenhauer. That explained in a
way why Mollenhauer and Simpson had refused to act
the night before. Either Mollenhauer, Simpson, and
Butler had combined against him, instead of assisting him
as he had expected, or Mollenhauer and Simpson had re-
fused Butler's proposition, or Mollenhauer was driving at
him alone—he could not tell which. It looked to his
shrewd mind, for the time being, as if all three had sud-
denly combined to strike him, and were using Stener and
the panic in combination to undo him He was angered
and chagrined, but he did not see just what was to be done
about it at the moment. Perhaps a few clear words from
him to Stener would bring the latter to his senses.
" George," he said, " there's no use being angry with
me for going to Butler. I had to do it to save the day.
If I hadn't been able to reach you before a day or two, and
the politicians hadn't helped me—as it turns out they
haven't—I would have failed, and you and the party would
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